Chapter 960: Ten Thousand Demon Valley
Tianlin Patriarch Bo Ren requested Ye Fan to seal the mountain, saying their cultivation was insufficient and they feared the seal would not be firm, worried that old enemies might break in to attack and kill them.
Ye Fan nodded. He understood that the Tianlin clan was expressing their resolve, guaranteeing to him that they would not set foot outside Changbai Mountain for five hundred years.
He said nothing more and entered the Primordial Dragon Cave. Immortal light shimmered brilliantly, auspicious vapors rose like smoke. The ancient cave was deep, bearing the mottled traces of time.
The first thing he saw were two meditation cushions, and his expression immediately shifted, because there were fluctuations of Dao marks upon them, clearly indicating that experts had sat here in meditation for many years.
"Where are these two people?"
Many in the Tianlin clan grew tense, fearing an accident. Old Heavenly Snake hurried forward to explain, saying: "They are the Dao Protectors of the Primordial Dragon Cave. Neither has returned for a hundred years."
He dared not conceal anything, because at Ye Fan's level, with a sweep of his powerful divine sense, no one could block it, and no secrets could be kept.
Changbai Mountain was regarded by the Jurchen tribe as their ancestral dragon land. In ancient times, they came to pay homage every year. The two Dao Protectors were ancestors of the Jurchen tribe. If still alive today, they would be over a thousand years old.
"People of the Jin Dynasty..." Ye Fan murmured to himself.
Back then, the Jurchen tribe broke out of the pass and destroyed the Northern Song. Even before that era, these two had already entered the cave to pay homage. Later, they unexpectedly achieved success in cultivation and became Dao Protectors of the Tianlin clan.
"Thousand-year-old ancients." Ye Fan pondered. These two had no low level of cultivation and were worth noting.
The Qing Dynasty also regarded Changbai Mountain as their ancestral land, because they were descendants of the Jurchen tribe. The two ancients Ye Fan had killed not long ago were Qing people, known as Dharma Protector Daoists.
Clearly, they could not compare to the Dao Protectors. The two ancients from the Jin Dynasty were around a thousand years old, having lived continuously since ancient times. Even now, they might not have died, with profound cultivation.
"Leaving for over a hundred years does not necessarily mean they have passed away in meditation." Ye Fan murmured softly, saying nothing more.
This ancient cave was very deep. Legend said that an ancient Saint Emperor once traveled north and went into seclusion here, closing his eyes for several hundred years. Thus, it earned the name Primordial Dragon Cave.
At the deepest part of the ancient cave was a stone chamber, dry and clean, with no furnishings at all. Even auspicious vapors did not approach. It could be described as simple.
Yet Ye Fan fixed his gaze on this place at once, ignoring everything else, and strode inside. He asked what kind of place this was.
Tian Snake Patriarch Bo Ren replied that this was where their ancestor, the Demon God, had gone into seclusion. He would often sit for a hundred years at a time, and no one dared approach.
"Where did the Tian Snake Ancestor go?" Ye Fan asked again.
Bo Ren sighed softly. The essence of heaven and earth had dried up. The Tian Snake Old Ancestor had calculated as early as the ancient era that future generations would find cultivation difficult and would hardly attain the Dao. He vanished from the mortal world during the Warring States period.
Ye Fan entered the stone chamber, closed his eyes, and silently sensed. He felt something was off. This stone chamber had no demonic aura. It was balanced and peaceful, untouched by the mundane world, very peculiar.
"Legend has it that in ancient times, a Saint Emperor came here to go into seclusion. Only a thousand years after he left did my clan's ancestor find this place." Old Heavenly Snake spoke up.
"That makes sense." Ye Fan told them to leave and sat down in meditation here.
He sat for half a month without moving a single step. During this time, he only passed a Dao scripture to Guo Zhen and gave him a few pieces of Source and two spiritual medicines.
As for Little Pine, he was very restless. After gnawing on a spiritual medicine, he climbed up and down the stone chamber, unable to stay still like a little wild monkey.
"Three zhang into the stone, there is a stone diagram!"
Ye Fan was astonished. He opened his eyes after half a month. Who had left this behind? Within the stone wall was a diagram, so faint that even his Source Heaven Eye could barely glimpse it.
This defied common sense. His heavenly eye could pierce all illusions and penetrate mountains and stone walls, yet here he had spent a full half month in enlightenment before catching a hazy glimpse.
He wanted to reach out and break the wall, but suddenly stopped, recalling a rumor. Ancient great supernatural power practitioners used thought to inscribe diagrams, branding them into stone. If forcibly broken open, everything would be destroyed, and nothing would be gained.
Ye Fan did not act rashly. In the end, he faced that stone wall and sat down again, motionless, quietly observing and comprehending. This made the Tian Snake clan uneasy. As long as he did not leave, they would remain anxious day and night.
"Source Heaven Secret Art, Breaking Method!"
In this era, only Ye Fan could observe the diagram within the stone like this. Otherwise, even if a Half-Saint came, it would be difficult to clearly see the Dao diagram three zhang deep in the stone wall.
He spent another half month, his eyes dry and his heavenly eye nearly splitting from strain, before he could see it all clearly and draw out a stone carving himself.
The moment he saw it clearly, Ye Fan instantly knew what it was. His heart shook. He quickly took out a bone fragment from his bosom and also carved out the mountain-and-river diagram he had seen in the underground palace of Mount Lu.
"They are one piece. This is a part of a larger diagram that has been split apart!"
His heart was shaken. He firmly committed it to memory, then gently erased the traces he had carved.
The opportunity to become an immortal!
He had not expected to encounter this kind of thing again in the Primordial Dragon Cave. This was truly unexpected. It could be guessed that either the Tian Snake Ancestor had carved it, or the ancient Saint Emperor had left it behind.
Regardless, it was at least a Great Sage!
The dismembered ancient in the underground palace of Mount Long, the cremated immortal Red Pine at Baling Mountain—which of them was not a Great Sage? Thinking carefully, it was truly shocking. The diagrams collected separately by human Great Sages were undoubtedly immensely heaven-defying!
To be honest, when he obtained the first stone carving and the second bone fragment, Ye Fan had not thought much of it. But now, obtaining a third diagram stirred him deeply. He wanted to gather them all and see what they truly were!
His parents had already passed away. On Earth, he had no other pursuits. Becoming an immortal and attaining the Dao was his only goal. This diagram of immortality was very important to him.
Ye Fan left Changbai Mountain. He did not take personal action, only telling them to seal themselves for five hundred years. He took Guo Zhen and Little Pine and vanished beyond the snowy mountains.
Outside, it was already the season of early spring. Ice and snow melted, tender sprouts broke through the soil, and a faint scent of earth filled the air.
Ye Fan gave Guo Zhen some Dao scriptures, a few Source blocks, and some spiritual medicines, then parted ways. They had met by chance, and he had given him an opportunity. He could not always walk together with everyone. Each person had their own Dao and path.
He returned to B City with Little Pine. During this time, he received a call from Xu Qiong, who had been without news for so long and thought something had happened to him.
Ye Fan invited Xu Qiong's family for a simple meal. Little Pine very sensibly stayed home, behaving obediently, not daring to follow, afraid that the crazy girl Xu Ye would torment him.
He rested for two days, then headed south again, preparing to go to the Ten Thousand Demon Valley. According to the information obtained from the Tianlin clan, the mystery of the real and fake Pang Bo was connected to this lineage.
In truth, whether he went or not, he had already guessed the gist. Now, he was merely seeking confirmation.
The Ten Thousand Demon Valley was located within the Ba Mountains. In ancient times, countless great demons had left their legacies there, long becoming a sacred land for the demon race in the mortal world.
The Daba Mountain range referred to the collective name for the mountains along the borders of Sichuan, Shaanxi, Gansu, and Hubei provinces. Ye Fan planned to go through Shennongjia in Hubei, entering from the eastern end.
Because since the last century, there had been constant rumors of wild men in Shennongjia. Now that he was back, he also wanted to find out the truth and see if the so-called wild men actually existed.
Ye Fan took Little Pine into Shennongjia, moving slowly. He bypassed various scenic spots and entered the uninhabited area. Ancient trees had already sprouted, streams gurgled, and it was very serene.
In the primitive region, there were many shrubs and dense forests. He was not in a hurry to travel. In the end, he lingered for several days in a valley, sensing the spiritual beauty of the mountains, rivers, and heavens.
"A wild man! Finally found one! Hurry and chase! We must take a clear photo!" Someone shouted.
Ye Fan saw a group of people chasing something in the distant mountain range. He took Little Pine and lightly leaped, silently overtaking them. Soon, several li away, he saw a strange figure covered in long hair.
"Spare my life, Immortal! I have not harmed anyone. I was just accidentally discovered by humans." This wild man, seeing Ye Fan flying through the air, was terrified out of his wits and knelt to beg for mercy.
Ye Fan was amused. He finally understood what the so-called wild man was. This was a minor demon, incompletely transformed, covered in long hair, running upright, truly looking like a wild man.
"In which mountain range do you cultivate?"
"I am a minor demon from the Ten Thousand Demon Valley. I often play with my companions and occasionally come east along the Ba Mountains into Shennongjia." This minor demon replied.
In truth, it was not that small. Standing upright, it was over two meters tall. It was a wild ape that had become a spirit and transformed. Strictly speaking, the difference from a wild man was not great.
Ye Fan immediately smiled. He was just about to go to the Ten Thousand Demon Valley, and unexpectedly encountering a minor demon from that valley saved him some trouble. He did not make things difficult for this wild ape spirit, because seeing it involuntarily reminded him of the monkey from the Big Dipper.
The broad Daba Mountains stretched a thousand kilometers, bordering several provinces. Minor demons from the Ten Thousand Demon Valley sometimes sneaked out and played along the mountain range.
Ye Fan found it both amusing and frustrating. The mystery of the Shennongjia wild men originated from the Ten Thousand Demon Valley? After learning the truth, he did not know what to say and could only shake his head.
This wild ape was very fast on its feet. It led Ye Fan straight into Sichuan territory, deep into the Ba Mountains. On the cliffs of some uninhabited areas, they saw many hanging coffins, full of mystery.
The cliffs stood upright, the coffins mottled, having endured for thousands of years without decaying. This was nothing short of a miracle.
"Haven't you opened them to look?" Ye Fan asked.
This wild ape shrank its neck and said: "We dare not open them. Everyone says that five hundred years ago, an old valley master wanted to pursue an Earth Immortal and opened many hanging coffins. He ultimately died mysteriously. Since then, few have dared to touch them."
Ye Fan sneered, saying: "Those of us who cultivate the Dao, are we afraid of such things?"
"It cannot be said! The current Third Valley Master also said it is related to an ancient Earth Immortal and told us not to move them recklessly. If we see any unusual hanging coffins, we must immediately inform him."
Ye Fan's heart stirred upon hearing this. He thought of a passage in the ancient text "Taiping Yulan": "The dwelling of an Earth Immortal, half on the cliff, with thousands of hanging coffins."
Soon after, they entered the deepest part of the Ba Mountains, where human footprints were rare. After turning left and right, they suddenly vanished from a mountain range and entered an even vaster region.
Ancient cliffs stood tall, old trees reached the sky, apes howled and tigers roared. It was an extremely primitive landscape, as if no humans had entered for thousands of years.
"Just as I thought." Ye Fan nodded. The Ten Thousand Demon Valley was also isolated from the mortal world, surrounded by an ancient great formation, located in a vast uninhabited area.
In ancient times, a Demon God cultivated here, and later some famous great demons came to join him. Thus, it gradually became a sacred land for the demon race.
The valley was named Ten Thousand Demon because it housed not just one kind of demon, but all sorts of races. Throughout the ages, three valley masters were elected, all with heaven-reaching magical powers.
The Ten Thousand Demon Valley was teeming with talent and had many demons. If judged by actual strength, it was actually more prosperous and powerful than the other three great Demon God lineages.
From far away, Ye Fan saw a huge valley. There, demonic aura surged into the sky, band-like black mist swirled around, like a peerless demon lurking in ambush.
"A true sacred land for demon cultivation." He observed the mountain and river terrain. This was a place that produced demons. According to the Source Heaven Scripture, an ancient Demon Emperor might have dissolved into the Dao here, creating such a geographical pattern.
Many minor demons climbed up and down the valley, lively and bustling. Ye Fan mused to himself that this place was so thriving; there might indeed be ten thousand demons.
A large black flag fluttered noisily in the wind, inscribed with the words "Ten Thousand Demon Valley," planted in the valley. Each time it unfurled, it seemed to move mountains and overturn seas, emitting thunderous roars, its momentum extraordinary.
Suddenly, drums and music sounded in unison from within the Ten Thousand Demon Valley. A group of great demons came out to welcome him, as if they could roar across heaven and earth, pluck stars and seize the moon, their momentum astonishing, demonic aura overwhelming the sky.
"An honored guest arrives. Forgive us for not welcoming you from afar."
In the center was a monkey, with a thunder-god mouth, fiery golden eyes, and fur all over its body shining with golden light—a spitting image of a Battle Saint Ape!
Ye Fan was stunned. He almost cried out. It looked too much like the monkey from the Big Dipper. The wild ape beside him whispered that this was their Third Valley Master.
"May I ask the Third Valley Master's name?"
The monkey king with the thunder-god mouth and fiery golden eyes had very sharp ears and answered directly: "Sun Wukong."
Ye Fan was dumbfounded, frozen on the spot.
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